SpaceX, Facebook, OneWeb and even Boeing are currently in a fierce battle to shake up the broadband business. Other big companies (and personalities) are backing them (Google, Airbus, Qualcomm, Intelsat, Coca-Cola, the Virgin Group, Jeff Bezos etc)

But these are not broadband companies? How will they pull this off?
These companies would like to provide global broadband internet access using thousands of satellites in low-earth orbit (about 1,500km)

OK, cool. What about latency and speed? The latency has got to be terrible, right?
Low-Earth orbit satellites could provide latencies similar to wired cable services. In addition to low latencies (about 25ms), SpaceX claims its satellites will deliver gigabit speeds (1 Gbps+)

Imagine a world where you are not limited to local broadband providers. Live in an area without a fibre connection nearby? No problem, OneWeb has got you covered.

Since filing its license last summer with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission for a constellation of broadband communications satellites, Boeing has focused on developing some of the project’s key technologies, Bruce Chesley, vice president...

I agree with roboto,legal issues and spectrum regulations are a huge barrier to deploying fast high speed wireless internet over tv whitespace globally,just think about it…why is the Microsoft Mawingu project in Nanyuki the only one deployed locally? The cost of deploying is still very high.I am beginning to realize that the future of high speed internet locally will be based on how fast and affordable residential broadband is going to become,this will set the benchmark on what kenyans can and should expect out of their internet services.

User terminals will provide high-speed connectivity with no change in latency during satellite handovers to ensure excellent voice quality, gaming and web experience. Our patent‑pending terminals can be self-installed. They are small, affordable and so efficient they can operate with optionally included solar panels, battery packs, and WiFi/LTE/3G and 2G radios to provide coverage directly to cell phones, tablets and laptops.